Monday, June 22, 2009

How to Talk Your Way Through a Phone Interview

Once reserved for sales interviews or simply as a precursor to a face to face, the phone interview has seen a sharp rise in popularity. Driven by the economic climate that has already forced companies to layoff thousands companies are seeking more ways to cut costs. These companies have found savings (reducing hiring manger travel, or candidate travel expenses) by conducting more phone interviews.

This poses serious challenges, in fact one UCLA study put that up to 93% of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues. So regardless of the reason you must be as prepared for the phone interview as you would be for a face-to-face (if not more prepared) Here are a few hints and tips to get you from phone to face:

Preparation- Studying and treat the phone interview like a face to face, even use a digital voice recorder to playback your answers to interview questions and listen for filler words and voice inflection, practice answering questions with mini-stories concise specific accounts, even jot down notes of what you want to say- but remember don’t come across robotic). The better prepared you are the more confident you’ll be in your answers.

Dress the part- Just because you can do a phone interview in your favorite sweats doesn’t mean you should. I’ll reiterate- treat this like a face to face. That means get up early shower and dress the part (remember how it felt to put on the game uniform, when you put that on it was all business same rules apply here- it’s game time). Taking the extra step to put on suit can give you the mental edge you need to come across sharp and prepared.Environment-. Use a landline if possible (if not pick a location with a great signal. Can you hear me? Can you hear me now is not a great way to start an interview). Get in a quite place & remove distractions. Close the door, turn the TV off, turn off iTunes, pull down the blinds, crate the dog, give the cat catnip, give the baby NyQuil then put a mirror in front of you & smile at it.

Essentials- Have your resume out in front of you. This will help you not sound like you paid someone to write your resume. Seriously you need to quickly access any employment dates or awards. Have a pen back up pen and notepad. You’ll want to write down the questions asked and take notes on the interviewer. This will help your research if you make it to the next step. Have your questions and notes on your stories/answers already wrote down on a separate sheet of paper. Finally have a glass of water ready to go.

Emotion- Smile through the phone, don’t think because they can’t see you they can’t hear your non-verbal cues (I know that is a bit of an oxymoron) but go ahead pace around the room, use hand motions be animated let your voice paint the picture for them.

Brevity- Don’t drone on simply because you can’t see them and you feel you need to be adding more to the interview- remember the short mini-stories and concise answers.

Close the deal- Don’t forget to ask for the next step- Here’s how “Do you have any hesitations with moving me forward in the interview process?” If they answer no you follow up with “Great what is the next step and what to we need to do to get there? (Pause to listen, if it’s a face-to-face go ahead and ask to get it on the schedule). If they answer yes, all is not lost; this gives you the chance to confront their objections head on. Simply ask them “What are your hesitations”? (Pause, listen and answer).

Phone Interview Do’s and Don’ts:

The Do’s• Treat this like a face to face, prepare and dress the part.

• Remove any ring-back tones you have, also just in case you miss the call use a professional sounding voicemail.

• Address any strong accents, speech impediments or anything else that could make it difficult for the interviewer to understand you. Best to get it on the table in the beginning than to pretend it doesn’t exists (trust me the recruiter will appreciate it if you bring it up).

• Create a calm, quiet environment. Remove all distractions.

• Have a glass of water ready to go in case you find yourself getting tongue-tied.

About Me

I’m the Chief Sales Officer at The Corporate Playbook LLC, www.thecorporateplaybook.com
The Corporate Playbook was created by athletes for athletes our mission is to connect former athletes with growing organizations. Through our innovative website we have career coaching tools, career search tools, Direct Placement opportunities & personalized profiles/networking opportunities (think Myspace meets Monster.com but for athletes only). My experience also includes: Recruiting for Fortune 500 companies in the healthcare, finance, pharmaceutical and advertising industries as a Director of Development with JobPlex, Inc. I’ve also served as a District Sales Manager for Yellow Book, USA. My focus was on hiring, developing and mentoring. Working on the hiring sides of a sales organization, I bring a tangible real world perspective to the challenges faced by today’s hiring mangers. I'm a graduate of the University of Louisville with a B.A. in Communications. As a football letterman at the UofL, I was appointed to the athletic director’s honor role, while winning back to back conference championships and competing in four bowl games & a recipient of the Johnny Unitas Scholar Athlete Award.